Asia

2013

Bangkok,
October 4, 2013--Vietnamese blogger Le Quoc Quan was sentenced to prison on
Wednesday for tax evasion, a charge that government authorities frequently use
to stifle critical voices. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the
appellate court to reverse the politically motivated ruling and urges
Vietnamese authorities to end state persecution of Vietnam's independent
bloggers.

Upon receiving the
news, Hinostroza told CPJ: "It will be an honor for me to receive this
recognition, which will drive me to continue working for freedom of expression
in my country and support the different processes that are being developed
around the world to defend this right."

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Bangkok, September 24, 2013--At least seven journalists were assaulted by a mob of masked men on Sunday while covering a land rights protest in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, according to journalists and local news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the attack and calls for an independent investigation that leads to the prosecution of the perpetrators as well as complicit police officials.

Bangladesh's Supreme Court has hardened the sentence against
Abdul Quader Molla, a top Islamist of a key opposition party, from a life term to
death for his role in mass killings committed during the country's war of independence
from Pakistan in 1971. But what caught my eye in particular was that Molla was
also convicted on a separate charge of murdering a prominent journalist, Khandoker
Abu Taleb, on March 29, 1971.

Bangkok, September 19, 2013--A radio anchor was
shot dead in the central region of Cebu City on Saturday, the latest death in a
steady stream of killings of journalists in the Philippines. The Committee to
Protect Journalists calls on the relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate
the murder of Jesus "Jessie" Tabanao and bring his killer to justice.

New York, September 18, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists
welcomes Monday's arrest of an individual suspected to have ordered the 2009
murder of journalist Uma Singh,
and calls on authorities to ensure the case is brought to justice.

There seems to be no end to American surprises when it comes to Al-Jazeera. The latest was revealed by Der Spiegel, the German weekly news magazine, which reported the U.S. National Security Agency hacked into our internal communications system, according to documents provided by Edward Snowden, the former NSA security analyst.

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China's Internet has changed fundamentally since Shi Tao was given a 10-year prison sentence in 2005. Shi's case was a marker of sorts--- the first high profile sentencing in China for online activity. The government says 40 percent of the population is online as of December 2012. That's 564 million people. In 2005, penetration was 8.5 per cent. Shi was detained in 2004 and sentenced on charges of "leaking state secrets abroad" for messages he wrote summarizing government restrictions on domestic media reporting on the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. He used his Yahoo email account to post anonymous messages on a US-based pro-democracy forum. His unexpected release from prison on August 23 was announced Saturday in a statement from PEN International, an organization of writers.

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New
York, September 10, 2013--An Indian journalist was killed late Saturday while
covering clashes between Hindus and Muslims that erupted in the northern state of
Uttar Pradesh, according to news reports.

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New York, September 9, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists
welcomes the early release of journalist Shi Tao, who was first detained in
2004 and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2005 on charges of "leaking state
secrets abroad." Shi was released on August 23, according to an announcement on
Sunday by Zhang Yu, the deputy secretary-general of the Independent Chinese PEN
Center.